Red Sox will be a playoff team
The Red Sox owned the fourth-worst record in baseball last season so joining the playoff hunt would be quite a leap.
It’s not as if we’ve never seen this before though. The Red Sox were a last place team in 2012 but turned it around to win the World Series the following year. Boston sank back to the bottom for two years before capturing three consecutive division titles culminating in another championship in 2018. This decade has been a roller coaster for this franchise, proving that a worst-to-first turnaround is possible.
Boston needs several factors to go their way in order for this to happen but there is a viable path to getting back in the mix for a spot in the postseason.
Getting Sale and Eduardo Rodriguez back will provide a significant boost to the rotation, repairing the team’s greatest weakness. Adding a mid-tier starter in free agency would help solidify the rotation and provide some much-needed depth so that they will no longer need to rely on castoffs, replacement-level spot starters or openers.
An improved rotation would go a long way but it’s just the start of what Boston needs to be a contender. The last few slides explored predictions that are an essential part of this team bouncing back next season. Even if those bold predictions come up a bit short, the Red Sox need to get a lot more out of Sale, Devers, Martinez and whoever ends up closing games for this team next season.
It certainly doesn’t hurt to have Alex Cora back in the dugout. Following his one-year suspension, Cora is back to provide the leadership that guided the Red Sox to their most successful season in franchise history.
This is a talented roster that didn’t perform like one due to injuries and unexpected down seasons from key players. If these bold predictions come remotely close to fruition then this team has the talent to make a playoff run.